Education

On Tuesday, voters across New York State will head to the polls to weigh in on school district spending plans and propositions and to elect board members. Bridgehampton and Sagaponack seek to override New York State's cap on tax-levy increases, which will require approval of at least 60 percent of district voters. All but one local district, Montauk, are proposing budgets that increase overall spending. Here are the basics in each of the school districts The Star covers.

Registration is open for East Hampton Town's summertime youth clinics and programs in sailing, basketball, tennis, and swimming. Swimming lessons are free, and the others range from $45 to $225 for each week of clinics.

NAMM's Best Communities for Music Education lauds schools for their "innovative and resourceful music education programs." This year represents East Hampton's sixth straight such award.

There are both pros and cons to keeping an eight-period day in place or retooling the daily schedule for nine periods, Springs School District administrators said Monday. A lively work session debate drew input from several teachers and school board members alike, all of whom said they wanted further discussion before any decisions are made.

In her first bid for a seat on the Springs School Board, Hella Drew will challenge Barbara Dayton, a two-term incumbent, in the May 18 election.

On Saturday, Stony Brook Southampton Hospital will host a car seat safety check from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 330 Meeting House Lane.

Three seats are up for grabs on the Bridgehampton School Board this year, with five candidates in the running to serve starting in July 2021 for three-year terms. The candidates are Ron White, Dwight E. Singleton, Jo Ann Comfort, Angela Chmielewski, and Michael Gomberg. Lillian Tyree-Johnson and Doug DeGroot, two longtime board members, are not seeking re-election.

Voters must be U.S. citizens ages 18 or older and must be residents of their respective school districts for at least 30 days before the election.

Top-level shuffles continued this week in the East Hampton School District.

Students at the John M. Marshall Elementary School in East Hampton are raising money for wellness initiatives and the school's Hometown Heroes program through a dance-a-thon. Children are collecting pledges from family members, friends, neighbors, and businesses in exchange for a promise to dance their hearts out on Tuesday, when all gym classes will be dedicated to the fund-raiser.

The Amagansett School District will officially add a new bus stop at the Gansett Meadow housing complex starting in September after at least 25 local residents signed a petition that led the district to analyze student safety in that area.

Officials at Sagaponack's little red schoolhouse are asking district voters to greenlight a proposed budget of $1.73 million, which despite having a year-over-year spending increase of just $27,572 is above the New York State cap on tax-levy increases.